DIY History | Transcribe | Campus Culture | Reuben Gaines' memoir, undated

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Page 43

Page 43 BUXTON.
so he picked up a hatchet that had the sharp part broken off and which was used to break up large chunks of coal. Roman sneaked up stairs to the dice room; then through the Poker room and now he is in the Pool Hall where Jim8s room faced the pool tables and on the Northwest side with one window facing west. Jim was a heavy sleeper and by that be it understood that he did not snore but his respiration could be heard for a short distance. While he was asleep in be with his pajamas on Tom Roman struck him on the right side of his head and then a second blow to the same side to make sure he had accomplished his purpose Now he ramsacked the room completely for money; jewelry and other valuables including a rectangular pendate with a blue one half carat jaguer diamond set in the middle of the pendant. After murder and robbery he found enough of kerosene in an old style lamp which Jim sometime used as a night light because the whole building was lighted by Delco Electric. With only about a quart of kerosene he threw it on Jim's body and on the bed to commite arson by destroyin the Building to cover his crime; but the flames leaping to the top of the windo was reflecting light and flashes on the house in close proximity through the window until it disturbed the man that was living there and he got up to investigate and extinguished the fire and finding Jim's body and the matress with both half burned. Tom Roman could not take a chance on being seen by any one so he sneaked out of what was once a town and walked on the railroad track to Lovilia but in so doing he threw away Him's watch which the officers of Albia found later. The trial was held in Monroe County, Albia Court. Roman had concocked a story that was worse than the Cock and Bull story. He made the trial sound trashy by saying they were gambling and argueing about Mabel Morris which was a very respected white girl; ofcourse these accusations were only to make the trial trashy and unimportant. I am quite sure that if Clarence Morris had been alive he would have brought another charge against Tom Roman for defameing the charter of his wife. Clarence had been dead about two years. I sold an automatic 11 shot to Earnest Smith; He in turn told it to Clarence and on a pleasant Sunday morning the Victrola was producing some snappy dance music in the Morrison home so Clarence engaged his wife in the bed room and started dancing but the gun in his hip pocket interferred with his movement so he took the gun out of his hip pocket while dancing and pitched it over on the bed but it landed on the shoulder and slid off to the floor and discharged and the bullet struck him back of the head and came out through his eye. He was immediately taken to the Hospital at Albia but was dead in three hours. 
Those accuzations about Jim was as false as a seven dollar bill and I doubt whether Jim was ever close enough to Mabel to even extend a greeting. Jim Henery was a professional Gambler and Tom Roman was a novice and an exact bum at gambling. I had Charley Miller to assist Will Nichols in the prosocution

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Page 43 BUXTON. so he picked up a hatchet that had the sharp part broken off and which was used to break up large chunks of coal. Roman sneaked up stairs to the dice room; then through the Poker room and now he is in the Pool Hall where Jim8s room faced the pool tables and on the Northwest side with one window facing west. Jim was a heavy sleeper and by that be it understood that he did not snore but his respiration could be heard for a short distance. While he was asleep in be with his pajamas on Tom Roman struck him on the right side of his head and then a second blow to the same side to make sure he had accomplished his purpose Now he ramsacked the room completely for money; jewelry and other valuables including a rectangular pendate with a blue one half carat jaguer diamond set in the middle of the pendant. After murder and robbery he found enough of kerosene in an old style lamp which Jim sometime used as a night light because the whole building was lighted by Delco Electric. With only about a quart of kerosene he threw it on Jim's body and on the bed to commite arson by destroyin the Building to cover his crime; but the flames leaping to the top of the windo was reflecting light and flashes on the house in close proximity through the window until it disturbed the man that was living there and he got up to investigate and extinguished the fire and finding Jim's body and the matress with both half burned. Tom Roman could not take a chance on being seen by any one so he sneaked out of what was once a town and walked on the railroad track to Lovilia but in so doing he threw away Him's watch which the officers of Albia found later. The trial was held in Monroe County, Albia Court. Roman had concocked a story that was worse than the Cock and Bull story. He made the trial sound trashy by saying they were gambling and argueing about Mabel Morris which was a very respected white girl; ofcourse these accusations were only to make the trial trashy and unimportant. I am quite sure that if Clarence Morris had been alive he would have brought another charge against Tom Roman for defameing the charter of his wife. Clarence had been dead about two years. I sold an automatic 11 shot to Earnest Smith; He in turn told it to Clarence and on a pleasant Sunday morning the Victrola was producing some snappy dance music in the Morrison home so Clarence engaged his wife in the bed room and started dancing but the gun in his hip pocket interferred with his movement so he took the gun out of his hip pocket while dancing and pitched it over on the bed but it landed on the shoulder and slid off to the floor and discharged and the bullet struck him back of the head and came out through his eye. He was immediately taken to the Hospital at Albia but was dead in three hours. Those accuzations about Jim was as false as a seven dollar bill and I doubt whether Jim was ever close enough to Mabel to even extend a greeting. Jim Henery was a professional Gambler and Tom Roman was a novice and an exact bum at gambling. I had Charley Miller to assist Will Nichols in the prosocution